Archer Foundation Award in Brain Research

Focus of the AwardFuture progress in developing therapies for neurodegenerative diseases will depend on technologies for early detection and measurement of disease progression in humans. The Archer Award is intended to foster research at the interface of basic science and technology development and to advance the development and application of innovative diagnostic methods in neurodegenerative disease(s).

Amount of the AwardThe Archer Award is $300,000, payable over three years. Annual award payments are disbursed after submission of an annual progress report, with the final $25,000 awarded after submission of the final report. The Archer Foundation's ﻿Indirect Costs Policy﻿ allows for up to 10% of this award amount to be used for indirect costs.

Criteria for the AwardThe Archer Award is by invitation only and is awarded to a scientific team that has demonstrated superior quality of scientific research in the field of neuroscience. We strongly encourage applications from early- and mid-career investigators who may have new ideas that need a limited period of funding to obtain data for application to the NIH or other major funding source. A Scientific Advisory Panel assists the Board of the Archer Foundation in the identification of applicant candidates and the selection of the recipients.

Application ProcessInvitations to submit a Letter of Inquiry (LOI) are sent out in April and due in May. Applicants shall be notified via email if they are invited to submit a proposal in early summer. Applications and the required attachments are only accepted via the website and are due by September 7. Notifications will be sent in October.

Applicants are asked to describe the specific problem being addressed, the focus of their proposed research, and what is novel about it. They are asked to describe preliminary findings that encourage the pursuit of the proposed approach and expected milestones. Applicants who are invited to submit a full proposal must also describe the validation techniques/ experiments they will employ to address the risks and challenges of the approach. Required attachments include a biographical sketch for each of the involved scientific investigators. For those invited to submit a full proposal, required attachments also include appropriately annotated figures and a list of references with hyperlinks that support the work proposed.

RecipientsAward Recipients are required to submit an online annual report to the Foundation summarizing the interim and final results of the research and a copy of any published or proposed paper. Recipients may also be required to travel to Las Vegas, NV (travel expenses will be covered) to present results.